Un-titled
by Kuma'sgonecrazy
Summary: Arthur grew up as a feral child but was taken in by faries. Years later he finds out that the world is made up of Alphas, Betas, and Omegas. Unbeknownst to him, the faeries had been suppressing his nature. One more thing, He's also the Queen of Spades. I'm will be rewriting and editing based on reviews. Rated T, may go up.
1. Chapter 1

Arthur was no fool.

He knew that when a hoard of soldiers just show up in front of your home, it wasn't for a spot of tea.

Not like he would have invited them in anyway. Upon entering his yard they had trampled his garden irrevocably.

If it weren't for the fact that they would have probably been missed had they not returned from where they came from, Arthur would have turned them all into toads.

Save perhaps, the young violet eyed soldier who had taken care to avoid the patch of Wolfsbane, from atop his horse. It seemed he was a squire, judging from his armour. Which, while not the best, was more fantastic than all those on the ground, and the insignificant detail that his chestnut steed was only one of the two among them.

The actual leader -whom Arthur knew to be a knight from his infrequent journeys into town- eyed him critically. Sizing him up, to see how much of a fuss he would make.

It seemed that if one of them were to make the first move, it would have to be Arthur. He cleared his throat and stepped forward.

Kneeling to the knight, he asked, "How may I be of service, Lord Aleric?"

His question seemed to snap the tension that had polluted the air and brought them all back to the present.

Some of the soldiers started to fidget and others readjusted their position. Arthur could tell that this irked the knight, and smirked inwardly. He did not dare show it.

Lord Aleric reaffirmed his lock on the boy's bright emerald eyes and roared, in a surprisingly strong voice, "We are in want of the teenager, Arthur Kirkland"

The teenager in question, nearly blanched, but he caught himself before he could give anything away. It seemed the young man would have to play it cool. Though he had no idea what in the hell they could want with him. He'd never broken a law in his life!

"I'm sorry sir," He answered, " but may I inquire as to why you'd pursue this young Mr. Kirkland?"

The knight was outraged at his question. He leapt down from his horse and marched up to the, now terrified, young man.

"I have no intention of explaining our prerogative to you! Now you can either tell us where he is, or stand aside while we search the property!"

Arthur bristled at the threat of searching his home. He would not accept this injustice! Never has he done anything to warrant this behavior from a soldier or otherwise! Perhaps it would be worth it after all, to charm this accursed party of imbeciles!

Arthur snapped back at the man in the harshest voice he could.

"There is no one in this humble abode, but I! Searching it would be useless!"

The knight laid a hand on the hilt of his sword. Arthur was quick to recognize the not-so-subtle warning.

"Then I suggest you tell me.", growled the knight.

Arthur was about to reply, when he heard a sound. After a second, he recognized it as a voice.

It seemed the knight heard it too, as he quickly looked around for the source of the disturbance. It came from all sides, bouncing off the trees surrounding Arthur's meadow home.

Soon enough, they could make out what the voice was saying, and to Arthur's dismay, he knew exactly who it was.

A little boy in a sailor outfit and with eyebrows as monstrous as Arthur's burst out of the tree cover. He was yelling a string of 'Bushy Brows' and made his way over.

Just as he was within' kicking distance and as oblivious to the situation as ever, Arthur tried to convey his sense of panic.

"Peter! Will you stop that non-!"

"Who is this 'Bushy brows' you speak of?", interrupted the knight.

Peter cocked his head to the side and frowned.

"What are you talking about? Bushy brows is Arthur. He's right in front of you. Can't you tell?"

Arthur heaved a great sigh. S_o much for controlling the situation._

The knight turned and glared at him, his long, blonde hair catching in the sunlight. Arthur took his chances and tried to search the angry soldier's eyes in the hope that he might be shown the slightest amount of compassion. He was sorely disappointed.

The knight waved his men forward, then addressed Arthur.

"Arthur Kirkland. You have been charged with failing to appear in the castle when summoned. We have been ordered to retrieve you forcibly, if needed."

All the color drained from Arthur's face. All his life, the emerald eyed boy has had a deep distrust of authority figures, and it looked as if now, all his suspicions were coming to fruition.

Hell, they were even coming up with fake excuses to arrest him! No summons from the castle had ever reached his door.

A heavy hand fell on his shoulder.

Arthur couldn't help but note that, should he resist, the knight would be forced to wield his sword with his weaker hand. That is, if something were to happen to the one currently gripping him.

Peter looked around nervously, the situation only now starting to dawn on him.

"Uh, I think I hear Tino calling me!", he stammered. Peter started to back up slowly before turning tail and running toward the woods.

Arthur was truly on his own now.

Several of the footsoldiers laughed and the squire frowned. The hand on Arthur's shoulder though, gave a great push. Which sent him stumbling several feet ahead of him.

All at once Arthur's anger and fear overcame him, and he willed the knight to burn. It wasn't a real fire, as much as Arthur wished it was, but an illusory one. To everyone else , it would look like there were real flames and the man would certainly feel real pain, but no actual damage would be done.

Unless , of course, you count mental damage, of which there would be much. The knight had probably experienced much worse in his life however, so the teenager didn't spare it much of a thought. With all the anger and fierceness in his soul, Arthur focused his livid gaze on his assailant and he burst into flame.

It only took two seconds for everyone's attention to fall on the burning man, and three seconds for the man himself to notice he was on fire.

That was plenty of time for Arthur to gain his bearings and make a run for the house. He didn't stop, even as he heard an unknown voice yell after him.

Arthur was nearly across the threshold, but an arm suddenly reach out and grabbed him round the waist. The arm was blazing, and now Arthur was starting to feel the burn too.

He struggled to loosen the man's grip on his torso. His mission nearly immediately changing from getting to the safety of his home, to escaping the excruciating pain of the flames on his skin. He started yelling and screaming as it got to be too much, and his instincts took over.

His hysterics woke the soldiers from their daze and they crowded all around, not quite sure what to do, but knowing they couldn't do anything.

Someone shouted to get water and a few soldiers complied, running into the house to bring whatever they could find.

Matthew, the man Arthur correctly assumed to be a squire, studied the burning men carefully. There was something off about it. He was compelled to figure it out even though his mentor and their quarter were burning to death.

That was it.

It suddenly hit Matthew that, though they were on fire, they weren't actually burning.

He had an idea.

"You there! Give me your shield!", he barked at one of the soldiers. The man was quick to follow his order.

Matthew leapt from his horse and made a beeline for the two burning men, pushing soldiers out of his way as he went along. He raised the shield above his head when he was a safe distance from the fire but close enough to reach, and took careful aim before gathering as much strength as he could, and swinging it down hard on the head of Arthur.

And it was all over.

The flames disappeared, and Arthur fell limp in the knight's arms.

* * *

It was dark.

Not pitch-black, just dark. Arthur lay on the ground of the familiar forest. Only able to observe his surrondings from his immobile body.

He didn't panic, this was normal.

It meant one of the fae was to have an audience with him for whatever reason. He'd find out soon enough, though there was usually a bit of time before the Fae were able to find him. When called upon, he'd always appear in a random place.

He didn't mind, the ground was warm and the air, sweet. He always felt safe on his piece of another world.

Several times, creatures of different walks of life passed him by. Only to spare him the most indifferent, if slightly curious, of glances. It was as a flying mint bunny was flapping his wings away that Maribell had finally found him.

The Fae was a tiny little thing. Maybe about the size of Arthur's thumb.

Sometimes you could see the general shape of a human when you looked at her, but usually all you could see was a tiny orb of colorful light.

She was dimmed considerably now; Much to Arthur's alarm. He had never actually _seen_ maribell before, and she was crying.

"Oh Arthur! I'm so sorry! This is all my fault!", she sobbed, "I can never forgive myself for this startling display of wickedness! And n-now you're hurt, and you-"

"Mari!", yelled Arthur, "Please speak clearly. Why are you devastated so?!"

Maribell flew forward and landed on arthur's chest. Her sobs slowly quieted down into whimpers as she forced herself to calm down.

Finally, in a weak voice, Maribell was able to speak with only the occasional hiccup.

"Do you remember*hic* when we found you?", she asked first.

"Why, of course," said Arthur.

He could remember the day as clearly as if it were this very moment. As a young child he had been quite feral. He would wander the woods, day and night, trying to survive in his wild home. One day, while he was in the river trying to wash the accumulated mud and muck from himself, he'd heard laughter. He wasn't very sure what the noise was then, and so he chose to investigate. The young child searched the woods trying so hard to find the noise, when he came across a cottage in a meadow. He went inside the cottage, after the laughter until he came to a door on the highest level of the home. Naturally, at that point he was stumped. There was nothing he could do but wait.

So, that's what he did.

For days on end he would never leave the door, other than to go forage for berries and a nice bug if he was lucky. It was after nearly two weeks of this, that the Fae finally showed themselves and took the boy in.

They showed him magic and taught him to be civilized; and soon enough, he was the perfect gentlemen. He had learned so many new things! Like how he lived in the kingdom of spades, and that each village had a knight to protect it, and that there were four kingdoms that ruled these lands.

They were Spades, Clover, Diamond, and Clubs, and each one had a King, a Queen, and a Jack.

The greatest thing the Fae had ever done for him though, was teach him magic. They had even shown him a potion that, when drunk everyday, would ensure him a long and prosperous life.

Surly what was troubling Maribell couldn't involve that time. He had more pressing matters _now_.

Arthur focussed back on the Fae when he heard her tiny sigh.

"Do you remember how you used to have a birthmark in the shape of the spades crest? You were so excited when you learned this, and so disappointed when it faded away."

Maribell frowned at the guilty memory.

Arthur felt a small twinge of annoyance at Mari's roundabout questioning. Of course he remembered. It was not so long ago when he joined them, and he wasn't a total dolt.

He was about to say as much when he felt it. He couldn't name the feeling, but it was as if for a second he wasn't there. As if he'd stopped existing just for a moment. Maribell noticed it too.

She knew exactly what was happening, and knew she had less time because of it. She flew up to Arthur's face to look him in the eyes.

"I don't have a lot of time, so forget what I said before! This is very im-"

Arthur faded again,

"-world made up of three dif-"

and again,

"Alpha, Beta, and Omega. Arthur, you ar-"

**and again for the last time.**


	2. Chapter 2

Arthur woke, again, to darkness. Unlike before, it was actually pitch black now. He felt cloth over his eyes and when he shifted a bit, he also felt ropes binding him.

He had no chance of putting up a fight, if he felt even the slightest inclination to.

His arms were tied to his sides, and his legs bound together at the calfs and thighs. Arthur would have chuckled at the soldiers paranoia if the situation had not been so dire. He had no idea what was going to happen to him at this point, and the fact that he had been ripped out of the netherworld without having been let go bothered him immensely.

For now, he just have to figure out what was happening.

He was on the ground, judging by the dirt and plant matter digging into his side. A fire crackled just a couple meters in front of him. They had built a camp. It didn't seem as if anyone were up and about, they must have been asleep.

Wait a tick.

This was his chance! Arthur twisted and flexed his wrists, looking for a weak spot he could exploit. They remained taut and steadfast.

That was okay, he'd deal with them later. His main priority now was getting rid of that damned blindfold.

He pressed his face against the ground and tried to scrape it off. It shifted a bit higher up his face. He was encouraged by this, and more enthusiastic when he continued. The noise made by his shifting and scraping caught the attention of Matthew, who had been previously shining lord Aleric's armour by the fire.

He sat there watching Arthur squirm for a while, before finally stepping in when the blindfold came dangerously close to coming off.

Trying to be as quiet as possible, he set down the armour and padded lightly around the fire over to Arthur's side. His hands shook slightly when he reached out to tap Arthur's shoulder. It was irrational, but after what had happened to the Knight, Matthew was hesitant to deal with his charge. Even if he was effectively powerless without his sight, as Aleric had claimed.

"Um, excuse me, uh, could you please stop that?", he asked gently.

Arthur froze. He was the epitome of "If I don't move, they can't see me", and as usual, it didn't work.

Matthew frowned and pulled his hand back, unsure of what to do. A couple of seconds passed with neither person doing anything but waiting and sizing the other up.

Arthur could tell by the voice, it was a young man. Probably even younger than him. It baffled him that he would get stuck with someone who sounded so meek. The last thing he remembered was fighting for his freedom, and though he lost, he at least put up a good fight. Arthur was a bit miffed that he didn't even get one of the big beefy soldiers as guard. The boy was obviously scared of him, as per the stutter. Did that mean Arthur wouldn't have to worry as much? Oh bloody hell, who was he kidding? Of course he should be worried! He's just been kidnapped!Off to 'Who knows where', dealing with 'who knows what'.

The farthest Arthur had ever been from home was the village, and he never stayed there long. The Fae had warned him of the dangers associated with man, and he'd made sure to heed their words. Whether they would still be around to advise him now was a serious concern to Arthur, and one he'd have to wait and find out. This was the most alone Arthur had been since his period of savagery.

Unbeknownst to Arthur, he had begun trembling. His fears and worries coursing through his mind and drawing away his attention. Matthew, on the other hand, did notice and seemingly at once, all his reservations about approaching arthur were flushed out with pity. Throughout this entire journey, matthew had never stopped to think about how this would all look to arthur. The man must have been terrified! To keep himself from drowning in guilt Matthew chose to look over Arthur's small but sturdy form. From the sandy, unkempt hair, trying and failing to hide his comically huge eyebrows, to his terribly worn shoes.

The man didn't exactly look like he was starving, but he could definitely use some extra weight. His baggy clothes certainly didn't help make him look bigger. Instead they made him look wore a patterned vest over a dress shirt and had on a pair of khaki old man's trousers. Matthew could tell automatically that Arthur would absolutely hate the diamond king, Francis. It'd be the same the other way around too.

Too bad they might not ever get to meet. There was no guarantee that Arthur was the queen of spades, even if it was very likely. They would have checked for the mark of spades, had the soldiers not been given explicit orders not to. The thing that threw Matthew off, was Arthur's fiery and, kind of, dominating personality. That was very uncharacteristic of the Omega who was to serve as Spades Queen.

As of yet, what category Arthur fell into was a complete mystery. He'd even been mistaken for a Beta by Aleric, when they first arrived at the cottage. Whatever the case was, they were just to bring Arthur Kirkland to the castle. The rest was up to Yao.

"What the bloody hell are you waiting for?!"

Matthew jolted at the sudden exclamation, a blush rushing to his cheeks when he realized he'd been sitting there for a while.

"Oh! uh, I'm sorry. I just need to fix your blindfold". Matthew stood up and walked around so he was behind Arthur. Just in case the blindfold came off, he didn't want to be in the line of fire.

Arthur stiffened. Sure, he'd guessed that was what the boy came to do, but that didn't mean he particularly liked it. In fact, he wasn't going to let that happen. The second he felt Matthew lightly touch the cloth, he started flailing around like a fish out of water. Not one of his proudest moments, but one he was sure he wouldn't regret.

A surprised yell almost escaped Matthew before he had the good sense to squash it. He looked on in shock at Arthur's writhing body. It was almost as if he were in pain. Matthew tried to grab Arthur's shoulders and hold him down but to no avail. It was vaguely reminiscent of trying to hold onto a raging mustang. An experience Matthew was painfully familiar with. After a few more fruitless attempts to bring Arthur under control, he'd had enough and decided it would just be easier to jump on him.

So he did.

Arthur could feel the air rush out of him when the full weight of the squire fell squarely on his chest. It made struggling a hell of a lot harder and almost impossible to continue for long. Matthew grinned triumphantly when Arthur came to the conclusion that it just wasn't worth the effort anymore.

"I get*huff* that you're unhappy*huff* with the situation,*huff*but you'd be better off calm and controlled with me, than hung upside-down by your ankles from a tree with pretty much everyone else. Now will you stop being so difficult?"

Arthur resented it, but ever so slightly, he nodded.

"Thank you" said Matthew gratefully. He slowly reached forward and lifted Arthur's head gently, then reached around and redid his blindfold.

"There. I'm done."

Arthur made sure to put on his nicest smile before responding in kind.

"Why, thank you. Now if you wouldn't mind getting the bloody fuck off me!"

Matthew blushed and quickly got off of the angry blonde. He'd barely noticed that he'd been straddling the other. He could only imagine what would have happened had Lord Aleric -or anyone else for that matter- come across him in that compromising position. His already angry blush turned furious.

Now was probably a good time to change the subject.

"S-so uh, how old are you?", asked Matthew.

Arthur was caught off guard by the random question, but even so he answered, "16, and you?"

"Same. When's your birthday?

Arthur's brow furrowed.

"Birthday?"

This piqued Matthews curiosity. Did Arthur not know of birthdays? How strange.

"You know, the day of the year you were born on. Like an anniversary."

"How fascinating. I guess I do not know my birthday"

Matthew frowned. "Well then how do you know how old you are?"

All the colour left Matthew's face upon Arthur's answer.

"The Fae told me"

* * *

"I see no reason for that to have been necessary.", growled Maribell. She hovered in the same spot she'd been when Arthur left their realm.

A high-pitched voice giggled. It came from nowhere, and everywhere at once.

"Hehe, then your eyes must finally be failing you~ Teehee!"

Already annoyed, Maribell was getting dangerously angry. Her pupils enlarged in her already very large eyes, till they were as black as onyx. Her nails elongated into points, but they didn't stop growing. They also went the other way, up over her hands and arms, as did the nails on her feet. her teeth grew and ended in points. Each one as sharp as a razor.

The entity responsible for Arthur's expulsion giggled. To it, nothing was more amusing than ruffling the Fae's feathers. Especially if they weren't quite orderly to begin with.

"There's no need to look like that dear~ Twas not as if you were about to divulge anything... restricted now, were you?~ hehe"

Maribell knew she was in a tight spot even with her righteous anger. One thing struck fear into her, though. The entity spoke as if it knew. It couldn't be possible, could it?

"What do you mean "restricted"? I don't ever recall you being privy to anything kept quiet by our great and benevolent lord"

The voice giggled again. Maribell had spent thousands of years surrounded by laughter and giggles, but there was something about this laugh that just disturbed her.

"Oh mari~ If you've not been told then who am I to spoil the surprise?~ I suggest you take my lead when it comes to these sorts of matters. Lest you should incur the wrath of various creatures, when it slips~ Teehee!"

That was a threat if Mari had ever heard one. All that was needed was for the wrong word to be uttered to the right person, and she'd have to face the Fae king. A dark, powerful being, and a famously vengeful one at that. Maribell would have to tread lightly herein.

The voice came back with a wistful sigh.

"It's always lovely to keep wonderful ideas, such as mine, in mind", It giggled "It reduces the casualties~Hee~ I'm afraid I must be going now. I would love to stay and continue this lovely chat with an old friend, but I heard something interesting is to happen in jack's grove~ Goodbye!~"

The presence was gone, and suddenly the atmosphere in the wood seemed to change. It became lighter, as if an enormous weight had been lifted.

Maribell let out a frustrated yell. Causing a powerful wind to rush through the trees, and a unicorn, that had grazed nearby, to take off into the forest.

She was both terrified and furious. Before, she had been running purely on faerie dust, but with the cause of her terror finally gone she had to remind herself to breathe.

This wasn't good. Of all the creatures who could have stumbled upon her trying to help Arthur, it had to be _that_ one.

It would probably be keeping a close eye on her now, waiting for something interesting to happen. It wanted nothing but trouble. Unlike the fae who only wanted to pull harmless pranks and have a good laugh, _it_ was a terrible being that took joy in the worst of misfortune. There was no stopping _it_ either, for even counting all of Mari's mighty power, she was still nothing compared to that thing.

Maribell heaved a great sigh. Well, she figured, there was really nothing she could do about it. She might as well just wait and see. Meanwhile, Arthur was being carried away to the castle, and whatever fate lay in store for him there.

This situation was definitely not good.

It was as Mari was about to head back home to the babbling brook when a realization hit her with the full force of a wendigo.** Arthur had no idea that consorting with faeries was treason in Spades Kingdom.**

* * *

Thank you to everyone who reviewed the first chapter. It really boosted my confidence in this story, and I'm sure I'll have a lot of fun writing more for this story. Special thanks to SakuraMoriChan, who gave advice for the grammar. I went back and tried to fix the mistakes, though I'm not sure if I got all of them^^".

I hope this chapter turns out well. At this point, I've proof-read it way too much for it to be of much use anymore. I'm currently looking for a beta, if someone wants to help.

Since I'll be continuing the story, I've thought it over and have come to the conclusion that "Un-titled" is a really bad title. If anybody has any suggestions for a title, I'd be glad to consider them.

Thank you all, for reading this chapter. Reviews are appreciated, and whoever can find the hidden pun in this chapter gets a virtual hug!


	3. Chapter 3

A thousand thoughts ran through Maribell's head. Some quiet and some with all the bang of thunder. Most centering around Arthur. If he died, all would be for naught and the Fae king would not be pleased in the least. She'd be lucky if all he did was destroy her. More likely than not she'd be exiled to the clover realm. where the most fearsome magickal beings lie, and the darkest of all kings reign.

"Oh, dear" she sighed.

She was doomed, and she could blame no-one but herself. If it wasn't for her distrust of the spades jack, Wang Yao, her judgement might not have been clouded to the point of starting this whole mess to begin with. Arthur would still have gone to the castle, but at least they could have prepared. The mark might've never been discovered anyway. Mari felt absolutely daft for her massively excessive overreaction. Her actions have brought nothing but regret. She never should have destroyed the summons letter. She never should have gotten involved. She should have told Arthur sooner.

* * *

The silence fell heavily on Arthur. He waited a few seconds for it to pass, or for whatever disturbed Matthew to make itself known, but nothing happened. In the end, he decided to speak, in a voice that seemed too loud for the moment.

"So uh,-"

"Matthew", he supplied vacantly.

"Matthew! Yes... is everything alright?"

Matthew felt like he was on a cloud, drifting away. He had no idea what to think. On the one hand, this man was a confessed criminal, but on the other, he probably didn't even know he was breaking the law. Should he be pitied or reviled? It got to be too much and Matthew just shook the thoughts out of his head. He would discuss this with lord Aleric later. Right now, he would treat Arthur no differently than he had before, if only with slightly more reserve.

"Every thing is fine. There's no cause for concern"

Arthur released a breath he hadn't known he'd been holding. It seemed his apprehension was for nothing. He relaxed, ever so slightly.

"Wonderful"

There was an awkward silence between them. Arthur had no idea what to say; he suspected it was the same for Matthew. Soon, a silent acceptance from both parties that the conversation was over, passed between them.

Arthur lay there, mulling over the implications of his capture, and Matthew sat and watched him. It all made sense now. No-one in any of the four kingdoms knew magick. To have the gift was virtually unheard of, and you'd be hard pressed to find someone who even believed in it. Matthew remembered the grumbling of the soldiers when they'd finally set up camp. Some believed that something unnatural had taken place, but still most others thought that some sort of mechanical trickery had to have taken place somehow. It wasn't until much later when the moon had risen directly overhead, and Arthur's breathing had even out hours before, that Matthew allowed his eyes to flutter closed and he drifted off.

Arthur grimaced at the sight of the horse. He had traveled on her back for the past few days, yet they still held nothing more than a mutual dislike for the other. It was perhaps earned on Arthur's part. Upon first riding her, he had dismissed her trot in favor of the more graceful gait, in his opinion, of one of his beloved unicorns. Though, luckily, no-one except Matthew seemed to hear his comment, the horse definitely did. Arthur was convinced she was making the ride so much more difficult than it had to be because of it. It was for this reason, Arthur was grateful the journey was ending soon: Possibly even that day. He'd heard Lord Aleric inform Matthew of it while he was untying in legs.

It took quite a fight, but the knight had allowed Matthew to unbind Arthur's legs if, and only if, he was to ride of the back of his horse. Arthur understood why, as soon as he was hoisted up on top of the beast. A fall at any speed would probably result in a serious injury for him, and pretty much, defeat the purpose of trying to escape on the first place. It'd been a while since he was last on a unicorn, and had forgotten just how high up equestria was.

Matthew, meanwhile, was quite amused with the situation. Arthur had obviously ridden before, and yet he still seemed as uncomfortable as it was to be. Every now and then he would look up from his spot leading the horse and sneak a peek at the kid. It was funny, Matthew thought, Arthur finally looked his age. Not as an old man, nor a helpless child. It would be crazy to suspect that he would commit a treasonous crime. All those whom Matthew had seen executed had, at least, looked the part. They were Scraggly, Filthy,most of them uttering unintelligible nonsense. It was just so strange. He'd meant to ask the knight about it, but so far, he hadn't gotten the chance.

The group continued marching for several hours. They had started out in the early morning and now, the sun had long since set. It had been an exhausting journey, and the men were eager for it to be over. Especially so, for the knight, who wanted this job done, so he could return to his village and hopefully leave behind the horrible nightmares that had plagued him since meeting that wretched boy and his accursed fire.

All of their hopes came to fruition with the yell of a young soldier who, in his haste, accidentally broke rank.

"Look! The castle lights! I see them!", he screamed.

"Soldier! Back in your place!", roared lord aleric.

It wasn't until the soldier fell back in place, with the look of a kicked puppy, that the knight felt any excitement himself. He too, could see the lights. They couldn't be more than an hour and a half away! Matthew was overjoyed. He couldn't wait to see his brother, Alfred, and more importantly, his best-friend, Gilbert. He had so much to tell him!

The only one, less than impressed with the news was Arthur. A ball of dread grew uncomfortably large in the pit of his stomach. His time of reckoning had come, and he had no choice but to face it head-on. If he could have escaped he would've but, and as much as he hated to admit it, the soldiers were right. He couldn't use his magick without his eyes. It only added to the humiliation that he was only finding out about this now. Anyway, he never broke any kind of law, and he honestly knew nothing about a summons of any sort. Surely, that was not enough to arrest him on. Even the, "resisting arrest" charge, could be seen as self-defence. There was just no reason for going through all the trouble of retrieving him like that. Arthur huffed in frustration. He was just abducted and was being brought to the castle, now was this a cause for fear, or curiosity? He'd soon find out.

* * *

King George sat impatiently at his throne. He'd been there for way too how long, listening to commoner after commoner regale their horrid lives to him in the hopes that he'd fix it. The current one apparently had seven children and three wives, who would all starve because of a failed harvest, unless of course, his majesty stepped in. He waved him off without a second thought. All he wanted was for his duties to be over and done with as soon as possible.

Really, he shouldn't even be doing this. If all had gone as planned, it would be his son, Alfred, dealing with all these sob stories. As always though, fate just would not give him a break, and made the new queen the hardest fucking person in the kingdom to find. Now they were down to their last candidate: A recluse, by the name of Arthur Kirkland. He was the only person to not honor his summons, and Yao had made it abundantly clear that it was almost definitely him. Even with, as the kings sources informed him, the boy's frankly nebulous blood caste. How Yao knew, the king would never know.

Oh well, he wouldn't dwell on such things any longer. It's never a smart thing for a man his age to take such uncertainties to heart. They had a way of weakening you from the inside out.

Yao would figure it out. He always did.

The giant door to the throne room opened just as waving another weeping man out. In, with a long confident stride, came Alfred, dressed sharply in a suit and tie. He would have changed into some normal clothes before coming, but his meeting was only down the hall, and the long trip to his quarters and back just didn't seem worth it.

"'Sup dad!", he greeted with his perfect smile.

"Hello, Alfred.", George replied, "All is well I presume?"

Alfred's grin grew."Totally! I just struck a new trade deal with the king of diamonds and he won't notice he got screwed until it's too late!"

That brought some amusement to the old king. He loved seeing his son excited to do his job. Also, he couldn't stand Francis at all, so his misfortune usually tended to be good news to him.

"That's wonderful, son! Have you heard on the progress of the Kirkland boy?", he asked.

Alfred was nearly humming with excitement now. He couldn't wait to see his new queen, and then, he would be king too.

"Yea! Aleric sent me an eagle! They're on their way back right now."

Alfred paused for a second.

"He also said to be wary, and that Kirkland is a wielder of magick. That can't be true, though. Right?"

* * *

**Thanks for reading thus far. I hope you enjoyed the chapter. The wonderful Beta who looked over this, is the awesome SakuraMoriChan *Round of applause*. Thank you, and I hope we'll be working together for a good while... Or at least until I finish the story.**

**If you hadn't noticed, my only source of nourishment is reviews, so please don't let me starve! **


	4. Chapter 4

The king scoffed. "Magick?! How absurd!"

He burst out laughing.

Alfred chuckled himself. He had to agree. That _did_ sound quite ridiculous. It probably wasn't worth much thought.

Lord Aleric, though, was not one to joke around. What if he was serious? He should probably look into getting Lord Aleric re-evaluated. It shouldn't be too hard. He was getting old.

"Anyway, dad, I have a few concerns to go over with you," said Alfred. The king slowed his laughing and calmed down enough to answer.

"Yes, Al? What might those be? The cook refused to make hamburgers again?"

"No," Alfred shrugged, "Alex is doing fine. Her food's a bit on the spicy side, but whatever. So, you know I can't wait to meet the queen. Without him around, I can't ascend to the thrown. My question is about the supposed marriage—"

"What about the marriage?"

"—which I still don't like the idea of—"

"Because you're an impudent brat."

"—and I don't even understand the point of—"

"You will."

"—and I was wondering if it would be strictly necessary to consummate it."

"...What?"

Alfred sighed and reluctantly continued.

"What if this guy's ugly? Or crazy? Or a giggler?! You know how much I hate gigglers!"

"I wish I didn't."

"Okay then. Still, do I have to?"

The King was dumbstruck. It was a toss-up between smacking Alfred and laughing at him. After a moment of thought, the King settled for just kicking him out instead, with a few choice words to mull over. Much to the prince's dismay, the words weren't very nice.

Alfred walked down the hall, sulking and trying to soothe his hurt ego. He cursed the wretched being who had the gall to suggest naming him Alfred Friedrich Jones out of all the awesome words that started with 'F'.

A group of three maids turned the corner. They were whispering furiously to each other. Upon seeing him, they immediately stopped and bowed deeply before heading off in the other direction. Alfred was usually not one to care too much about gossip, but he was strangely curious as to what they were talking about.

Quickly and quietly so that they wouldn't hear, Alfred rushed to their position on the opposite side of the hall and walked as if he was with them. It was times like this when he could properly appreciate the genius of the architects who designed this castle. They had lived some 6-700 years ago, yet they had the foresight and ahead of the curve thinking to suspect that someone might want to eavesdrop on people in the far future. As long as you're in the right place, echoes are as clear as day. Alfred barely had to do any shifting before the voices tuned in perfectly. He was probably the only person in the country who knew about this.

"They say he does magick."

"How foolish! I thought you knew better than to believe that!"

"You never know~ This world is a strange place."

"You dream too much to be any good."

"Oh, belt up!"

"Girls! Forget that. I heard he has eyes a deeper emerald than those in the crown jewels"

"How could they know that? I heard he was blindfolded."

"One of the soldiers who retrieved him said so."

"I heard he has the foulest language ever! He cursed at the porter for some comment he made."

"Really?!"

"Yes! He made him cry!"

Alfred snorted. The voices stopped. He turned his head towards the maids and caught the eye of one of them. She blushed and whispered something to the others and they hurried off silently.

Alfred cursed and continued on his way. He had forgotten that the echo thing wasn't like a one way mirror. At least he had found out something encouraging. News of his possible bride had already reached the servants. That meant the soldiers had to at least be at the outer gate. If he got to Yao's quarters in time, he might be able to catch him before he left to inspect the new hopeful.

Alfred broke into a sprint, speeding around corners and dodging the occasional servant, only stopping once to ogle at the rack on the visitor from Clubs—no, wait, Clover kingdom. He was back on his way, though, when he caught the glare from her creepy sister.

Alfred barely noticed the strain he was putting on his suit as he sped away. Finally, he made it to the Jack's chambers and he wasn't even a little winded.

The prince knocked hurriedly on the door. No one answered. He did it again—harder.

Still no response. Alfred was on his 4th knock when the door was ripped open by a very angry Jack. It seemed he had interrupted something; something important, judging by the threatening gestures.

Alfred waited for him to stop yelling in rapid Mandarin before asking his question. It took a surprisingly long time, but it happened.

"Just thought you should know that Arthur guy is here," he said. "Can I go meet him with you?"

Yao rolled his eyes, and he sighed as if he had heard this a thousand times before.

"You are not to meet the Queen until the ceremony. The answer will not change."

Alfred groaned in frustration.

"But why?! I just don't get it! What the hell is with all these stupid rules?! I'm practically the King already!"

A wave of sympathy rolled over Yao. He knew it must have been difficult for Alfred. The young Alpha hardly knew half of the secrets this kingdom held. However, he was aware that they existed. How very frustrating it must have been.

"You will find out soon."

Alfred's sky-blue eyes hardened. "Everyone always says that."

"You'd do well to listen."

They stared each other down, neither one willing to back off. Alfred opened his mouth to say something but was interrupted by a servant half running down the hall. They watched the boy approach. He seemed nervous as hell—the kid must have been new here.

The boy bowed when he reached them, and he turned to Yao.

"Excuse me, sir! I've been sent to inform you of Arthur Kirkland's arrival."

"Wonderful. Have Arthur taken to the sub-ter garden. First, though, would you mind escorting Alfred to his room?"

Something about the look Yao flashed him stopped him from protesting. The servant nodded then bowed again to Alfred.

"Please come with me, sir."

Alfred ignored him, choosing to address the Jack.

"Are you sure?" he asked.

"Yes."

He turned and walked away, thus leaving Yao in his place and making the servant rush after him.

The Jack waited until they were both gone from sight before going back to his room to gather his supplies. If Kaoru was telling the truth, he would need a few extra things.

A rolling feeling of dread coursed through Arthur's entire body. The fae had taught him of the Gallows—a place where the kingdom took criminals to die. At the moment, he sympathized with them greatly. He knew the fear of being walked to your death.

It crossed Arthur's mind that he could have been exaggerating a bit. He would have asked Matthew, but every time he tried to strike up a conversation, the other made some excuse to not talk to him. Arthur had no idea what he had done to make Matthew avoid him like this. He only approached him when he had to, and with no one to vent to, Arthur felt lost.

The party reached the crest of the hill. The once dim light had grown into a huge fortress. They had, maybe, ten minutes of walking until they reached the first gate. There were twelve in all.

The wall was nearly 4 meters in height, and the entrance was a large stone doorway with wrought iron gates. As they got closer to the gate, the details on the stone became clearer and clearer until they could all finally see the incredible work of art.

No matter how many times Matthew saw these carvings he was always delighted by them. The details mystified him when he was a child. He could make out that it was telling a story, but what it was, he did not know. The words and symbols carved into the stone were of some strange, foreign, language that was long since dead. He had gathered, by the scenes depicted, that it was of the ancient 'war'.

Of course, this 'war' was mostly just hogwash. They didn't even teach it in schools anymore. All he had for reference were the legends and tales told to him when Alfred was off learning to be King. He sometimes resented Alfred for being able to inherit the kingdom, but now he knew just how lucky he was.

Matthew felt Arthur shift on the horse. He had been doing that for the last hour. Matthew couldn't fathom just how anxious he was. He wanted to reassure the blond that everything would be fine, but even he knew that wasn't true. The man had broken the law, he had pretty much tortured the knight and if the story going around the soldiers that Arthur was chemically suppressing his nature was true... yeah.

Matthew shook his head slightly and sighed. He could only imagine what would happen if Arthur also turned out to be the Queen.

How would that work? Would all his transgressions be forgiven? Would he be executed and Alfred forced to wait another 16 years for a new Queen?

He would have to ask Gilbert after he told him about what Arthur said. Matthew had abandoned all thought of asking Lord Aleric once he witnessed the man thrashing around in the throes of his nightmares. An angry and terrified man could do a lot when justified.

Besides, if anybody knew what to do it would be Gilbert. Even if the man acted like a crazy, self-absorbed 13 year old drunkard most of the time, he had still learned quite a few things in his time.

It often surprised Matthew when Gilbert would bore into his soul with his ruby red eyes, shift his white hair out of his face and say something amazingly thoughtful. Gil would explain things.

Matthew was pulled out of his thoughts by the neighing of the horse. Without noticing, he and the party had passed the first gate and were venturing towards the second.

The area between the gates was gorgeous. Row upon row of different types of flowers greeted them. A small gazebo several yards away from them overlooked a pond, teeming with fish. The most dominant feature of the area, though, was the roses.

They were all blue.

A thick cloying smell wafted to Matthew's nostrils. It was the national flower of the Spades kingdom. They were a genetic impossibility, yet they grew naturally on Spades soil.

Matthew preferred the regular red roses to the blue ones. He had always been fond of the color red. Also, thought Matthew as he looked around the area, blue was a little too abundant in their kingdom.

Soon, they had passed through the second gate, then the third and then the fourth. Each successive one was different in some way than all the others.

They were forced to ride a boat across the moat that constituted the 5th ring. There was already a crew of servants to man the ship, waiting for them. On this particular crossing, Matthew had been forced to carry Arthur in his arms, and he could feel him shivering as if in the dead of winter.

The sixth ring inside the gate was a giant aviary. Exotic birds gave off strange sounda and scents. All of them had some blue feature in one form or another. It amazed the soldiers to no end. They had passed through the gates more times than they could count. All of them had served guard duty at some point or another.

Finally, they had crossed the final ring.

A young servant boy was waiting for them. He was one of Matthews old friends back when their stations in life didn't matter. If his memory served him correctly, the boy's name was Eduard, and he was a Beta.

"Lord Yao wishes for the boy to be taken to the sub-ter garden. The soldiers are to retire to the barracks."

Lord Aleric stepped off his horse to address the man.

"I presume the proper precautions have been taken for the boy's containment?"

The servant met the knight's gaze with the confidence of someone who was not in another class altogether.

"That has been deemed unnecessary."

The knight was taken aback by this response.

"Now see here! I ha—"

"Please take your concerns to the Jack for consideration."

The knight fell silent. He was appalled at the utter lack of precaution on the part of the castle. He had even written to the prince to warn them of the danger for Pete's sake! Aleric had half a mind to take his anger out on the servant, but in the end he figured he just couldn't be bothered to.

"Fine! Take him, but don't say I didn't warn you."

He turned to Matthew.

"Give them the boy."

In a flurry of motion, Matthew had lifted Arthur from the horse and stood him on his feet. He noticed they were in danger of buckling.

This is why you let a man walk when you're taking a four day journey.

The servant boy waved them forward as if he were bored.

Arthur went through all of this in a numb sort of disengagement. Even after the soldiers had been dismissed and he was blindly led into, from what he could tell, a very grand entrance, he still couldn't bring himself to care all that much.

All his anxiety had come to a peak on the boat ride, and he had apparently left it there... along with all his other feelings.

After several minutes of walking they had descended down into a hollow staircase. The temperature seemed to drop with every step they took. A noise like rushing water bounced off the walls around them and was amplified to the magnitude of a waterfall. A smell like everything Arthur had ever loved reached them. It was like an underground paradise. When they reached the bottom he could feel soft grass beneath his feet as he was led forward to the water he had heard earlier. It was less a rushing current now and more a small stream.

"You may leave him on the bench," said a calm voice from behind them.

Arthur could tell from Matthew's jump that it was a surprise to him too.

He was hurriedly led to a bench and gently pushed down upon it.

"The rest of you may leave."

There was a small amount of protest, but the Jack had made his command clear. Now it was only him and Arthur.

He walked forward so he was directly in front of him. Slowly, Yao untied the blindfold and took it off.

All that was needed was a quick check for emerald eyes and he was sure.

"You're the one I've been looking for."

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**Hope you guys enjoyed the chapter! I know this one is a bit late. I'm hoping to get the next one up sooner, to balance it out. **

**The lovely SakuraMoriChan beta'd this. I'm sure you're all grateful. I certainly am~**

**Please read and review~**


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